Sports books

Becca C. · Apr 15, 2012

I'm a huge hockey fan (as evidenced by my avatar) and I'm just dying to write YA novel about the teenage daughter of a head coach in the NHL who writes a blog about the behind-the-scenes of a pro hockey team. I'm kind of having those pesky thoughts of who would want to read that? I know I should just write it for myself and hope that somewhere, someone else would like it too.

There have been a couple YA sports novels that have gotten popular (Dairy Queen, Catching Jordan are the ones I can think of), but those two are about football. I wonder if hockey would have similar appeal, if the relationship aspect of the story is just as strong?

How do you guys feel about YA sports novels in general? Is there a balance that has to be struck between the sport itself (rules, traditions, stats, etc) and the more common YA themes (love interests, friends, non-sport themes)? How much technical talk do you tolerate?

lolchemist · Apr 15, 2012

I want to write a book about a high school basketball team myself. I have about 10k words down but it's on the backburner until I finish the YA fantasy series I have in my sig. (And believe me it's painful, every time I watch a basketball game I'm like 'I WANNA WRITE MY BASKETBALL BOOK BAWWWW!!!') I think there are some sports books out there already, and the good thing about them is that they can end up being cross-over books that are read by both boys and girls (as long as it's not a "Which cute basketball player will Mary Sue choose?" type of a plot!)

So, yeah, WRITE IT!!

ETA: This book was pretty good IMHO. The author writes other sports YA too.

Becca C. · Apr 15, 2012

I totally will, watching playoff hockey has me so inspired!

The only criticism I've heard from a couple people I've bounced the idea off was "why can't you make the girl the athlete?" But honestly, I want to write a FMC who isn't physically powerful to compensate for her femininity, like so many badass FMCs. My hockey book MC is actually injured and hasn't actually played hockey in years. Her strength is that she's still loves the sport and the team, even though she's forced to be more of an outsider.

Sage · Apr 15, 2012

I think Dairy Queen was a good example for the technical talk aspect. Both in football and in basketball (in Front and Center), everything is very clear.

One thing you'd be able to do, though, with her writing a blog about hockey is that if you think something wouldn't be understood by the average non-hockey-playing teen, the MC could explain it for her readers, as long as you did this in moderation. But I think the basics of the game would come across.

Since her blog will focus on a pro-sports team, you'll have to be careful about not making the team's conflict more important than the teenage conflict. In the books where the teen is the player, teenagers are at the focus of both the sport and non-sport drama. But the pros will be older, so they cannot be the main focus.

Another sports series I've seen lately (have not read) is Head Games, which is about soccer. I remember reading books about basketball and gymnastics when I was younger. The gymnastics one had a glossary in the back, but I remember having very little problems with the basketball in those books.

Kelsey · Apr 15, 2012

Definitely write it. As a part-time bookseller, I can tell you that hockey tends to be a gap in the market (in all genres). I've had a few kids come in looking for hockey books, and the only thing I know to give them are the hockey-themed Matt Christopher books. As for your questions, I don't think you should dumb down the hockey rules/game for readers, and write any relationship subplot as you see fit. I'm writing about another under-appreciated sport and dealing with the same issues, but I believe passion will come through the writing and that's the best sales-tool.

lolchemist · Apr 15, 2012

Becca C. said:
"why can't you make the girl the athlete?"

That response kind of reminds me of that episode of the Simpsons where Lisa runs off to join the *I don't even remember what sport it was* team to make a political statement (she ASSUMED it was an all-boy team) only to find out it was co-ed and she immediately lost interest.

And anyway, in the Blindside, Sandra Bullock's character wasn't the athlete but she sure as hell was a strong woman!!

Kitty Pryde · Apr 15, 2012

I think it sounds interesting. You would probably need a designated love interest because a teenage girl getting hit on by crusty old hockey guys kinda grosses me out. Maybe that's just me tho

What if she was a manager for a team of her peers? Just a thought. I remember seeing a YA book about an injured girl athlete, I think it was called "Overboard" or "Going Overboard" or some such, about a really competitive snowboarder chick.

There's also that book The Running Dream, about the girl who gets her leg cut off and can't run anymore, but I thought it really super sucked. If you haven't read Tangerine, oh my god that book is great. It's about a legally blind kid who is a good goalie, but no one wants to let him play. I think that's the best YA sports book ever. Oh, and check out Matt de la Pena, and Andrew Smith.

Anyway! I think a good sports book is mostly rooted in character drama, not sports drama. And reveals lots of information about the sport in a natural way. I've read football books where I don't understand what plays are being played, and I just start flipping the pages until I reach a nonconfusing bit.

Becca C. · Apr 15, 2012

The love interest is going to be a rookie goaltender, I'm pretty sure. Some rookies are as young as eighteen, so there won't be crusty old guys

I'm really looking forward to crafting the players, though, and their relationships with the MC and each other.

The Running Dream was extremely vanilla and boring, but the MC's disability aspect was interesting. Never heard of Tangerine, it sounds awesome! I'll definitely check it out.

lolchemist · Apr 15, 2012

Kitty Pryde said:
You would probably need a designated love interest because a teenage girl getting hit on by crusty old hockey guys kinda grosses me out.

Me too! I mean I've been crushing on athletes since before I even hit puberty but had one of them actually come up to me when I was say, 15, I would have been like "OMG EWWWW! ~~(Wait 4 me til I'm 18 plz!)~~"

It WOULD make sense if the MC had a crush on one of those unattainable hockey players though!

ETA:

Becca C. said:
The love interest is going to be a rookie goaltender, I'm pretty sure. Some rookies are as young as eighteen,

Yeah, that would be perfect. You could even make him 19...

Kitty Pryde · Apr 15, 2012

Becca C. said:
The love interest is going to be a rookie goaltender, I'm pretty sure. Some rookies are as young as eighteen, so there won't be crusty old guys I'm really looking forward to crafting the players, though, and their relationships with the MC and each other.

The Running Dream was extremely vanilla and boring, but the MC's disability aspect was interesting. Never heard of Tangerine, it sounds awesome! I'll definitely check it out.

Yeah, that sounds perfect! Would you make him someone she played on a team with in the past? Then she could be all filled with lust and jealousy toward him! Oh, teh drama!

I just thought everything in The Running Dream was such bullshit. Because I guarantee you that every high school runner and high school running coach and prosthetist in the US knows who Oscar Pistorius is, so it just felt so hokey and melodramatic to have her Epically Mope for ages until her coach MIRACULOUSLY discovered that some amputees are fast runners. And her dad is supposed to spend all his time researching on the internet, and he did not discover a dude who was all over the news for years? Come on, now. And THEN, after spending half the book being pissy about the way people infantilize her since she's short a leg, she meets the Speshul Inspiration Wheelchair Friend and makes the unilateral decision without consulting her that said Inspirational Friend wants to be pushed along in some running race. WTF? For all she knows, Speshul Wheelchair Friend would say FU, I got better stuff to do than be pushed around for hours on a bumpy-ass road to that. But it doesn't matter because 1. the opinions of people in wheelchairs doesn't count and 2. all people in wheelchairs just long to run free. So overall, as a book about Disabled People Can Do Stuff Too, it pretty much blew.

WalpurgisQuill · Apr 15, 2012

I don't mind sports in YA, insomuch as I won't dismiss a perfectly good one just because the MC plays a sport.

However, in general, I find sports to be the most boring thing in the world. I do not like them, and even if I did there would be a large canyon between my liking them and my ability to play them. So where there is an entire chapter dedicated to a game, I pretty much skim it to see if there are any important pieces of dialogue or thought. When there isn't, I simply skip ahead to the next chapter.

frimble3 · Apr 15, 2012

Becca C. said:
I totally will, watching playoff hockey has me so inspired!

The only criticism I've heard from a couple people I've bounced the idea off was "why can't you make the girl the athlete?" But honestly, I want to write a FMC who isn't physically powerful to compensate for her femininity, like so many badass FMCs. My hockey book MC is actually injured and hasn't actually played hockey in years. Her strength is that she's still loves the sport and the team, even though she's forced to be more of an outsider.

Good choice, making your MC an ex-player. That way, she can describe how stuff feels, rather than just explaining the terms. It takes her out of the category of 'puck bunny'.

Also, if you want the story to be about an NHL team, well, if she's a player, she'd be only the second woman to ever play in the NHL, which would really shift the focus of your story. Better to make her the boss's daughter, for access, and an ex-player, for the details.
Also, making her the boss's daughter is going to add conflict with her and the young goalie.

Polenth · Apr 16, 2012

When I read a sports novel, it's to see a world I don't take part in. I'm looking for the insider perspective, not the outsider perspective. Your novel sounds like an outsider perspective, as no matter how involved, someone not on the team is not an insider.

As far as marketability goes, I suppose the question is how many people want the outsider perspective.

lolchemist · Apr 16, 2012

Polenth said:
As far as marketability goes, I suppose the question is how many people want the outsider perspective.

The daughter of the owner would make a really interesting 'insider' perspective IMHO. Maybe she's not out on the ice but she has access to so much stuff that the average reader never gets to see!

She's an outsider in one sense but an insider in another.

lolchemist · Apr 16, 2012

frimble3 said:
she's a player, she'd be only the second woman to ever play in the NHL,

I think OP's readers wanted the girl to be an athlete in school though, not in the NHL. I'll be honest I was assuming she was either a hockey player in school or a cheerleader myself, until OP added more info.

LadyA · Apr 16, 2012

The MC is male, but I KNOW IT'S OVER (I can't remember the author) is about an ice-hockey player, and that's really good.

And Hannah Moskowitz's (aka AW's Shady Lane's) BREAK has the MC's brother as a hockey player.

Cai · Apr 16, 2012

There is Sarah Ockler's Bittersweet. Although the FMC herself is into ice skating, she teaches her school's hockey team how to skate. But the sports aspects aren't that big a deal since the FMC is also busy baking cupcakes und swooning over two different guys. But maybe you could check it out nevertheless.

As for the sports theme in general: I've never played or watched football in my whole life (To be honest, I didn't know a single thing about it.) but I really enjoyed Catching Jordan. And I learnt a thing or two about football.

I'd say go for it!

totopink · Apr 16, 2012

Personally, I hate reading books where the MC is deeply involved in a hobby I can't relate to. It doesn't matter if she's a hockey player on the side, or something, but if the main focus of the book is that she's a hockey player I'd find it hard to get to grips with. I read a book about a girl who lived on a farm once and although, as it happens, farming is in my family, I have always been a city girl. She kept talking about the seasons and the animals in really technical terms and it went totally over my head.

I imagine it would be the same thing with sport. I like sports movies because you can see what's happening, but if it was descriptions in a book about a sports game or something I think I would have a much harder time picturing it because I am not really a big fan of sports.

WalpurgisQuill · Apr 16, 2012

totopink said:
Personally, I hate reading books where the MC is deeply involved in a hobby I can't relate to. It doesn't matter if she's a hockey player on the side, or something, but if the main focus of the book is that she's a hockey player I'd find it hard to get to grips with. I read a book about a girl who lived on a farm once and although, as it happens, farming is in my family, I have always been a city girl. She kept talking about the seasons and the animals in really technical terms and it went totally over my head.

I imagine it would be the same thing with sport. I like sports movies because you can see what's happening, but if it was descriptions in a book about a sports game or something I think I would have a much harder time picturing it because I am not really a big fan of sports.

Yeah, I think you'd have to be into that sort of thing. Those books are for a certain demographic, though, that would pick up the book knowing sports are instrumental to the plot.

Chumala · Apr 16, 2012

When I was younger I loved hockey and would read some hockey books. I'd be interested in the story. Just as long as the NHL team isn't Vancouver. Make it somewhere good... like The Hawks!!!!!

I'm interested but not sold. I'm curious to how you can make a story out of what you've said. Would you be following them for a season or something? Will she be bullied in school and Patrick Kane comes to her school one day because she's really good friends with him?

Need more info!!!

frimble3 · Apr 16, 2012

And I'd like to see a book about a teenager who's involved in something outside of high-school and choosing which one of two hot guys to date. This could be about a girl involved in the family business, maybe too involved? Or trying to figure out if this is going to be her future?

Actually, it had the framework for a series: Training Camp, The Season, Playoffs, Gone Golfing (oh, or is that just the Canucks?

) Or, you could do the whole year in one book.

I'm not much of a sports fan, but I'd be interested to see where this goes.

chevbrock · Apr 16, 2012

I don't think you necessarily need to have the MC play the game. Just being around it all her life would teach her a lot. But why the heck not?

I think you could have a lot of sub-plot going with such a diverse range of boys/men. Is someone cheating on his wife? Does someone else have an injury they're trying to hide, and taking lots of drugs and such? Is someone crushing on someone else on the team but is too scared to come out?

All just stupid ideas, but they might get you somewhere ...

As someone who has written a sports-themed novel, I say, go for it!

Becca C. · Apr 17, 2012

Chumala said:
When I was younger I loved hockey and would read some hockey books. I'd be interested in the story. Just as long as the NHL team isn't Vancouver. Make it somewhere good... like The Hawks!!!!!

I'm interested but not sold. I'm curious to how you can make a story out of what you've said. Would you be following them for a season or something? Will she be bullied in school and Patrick Kane comes to her school one day because she's really good friends with him?

Need more info!!!

NO WAY NOT THE HAWKS

actually, we hate Boston and now L.A. a lot more than the Hawks!

I'm thinking I would make up a fictional city and fictional team.

frimble3 said:
And I'd like to see a book about a teenager who's involved in something outside of high-school and choosing which one of two hot guys to date. This could be about a girl involved in the family business, maybe too involved? Or trying to figure out if this is going to be her future?

Exactly, there's going to be a lot of "is my whole life going to be like this?" and a LOT of stuff about her relationship with her dad.

chevbrock said:
I think you could have a lot of sub-plot going with such a diverse range of boys/men. Is someone cheating on his wife? Does someone else have an injury they're trying to hide, and taking lots of drugs and such? Is someone crushing on someone else on the team but is too scared to come out?

Yes!!! This is why I'm so looking forward to writing this thing. Creating the players is going to be such a blast.

I think I would start the novel at the trade deadline, where the team acquires a new player -- a guy the MC knew way back in the day and has a bit of a fraught relationship with -- and then go all the way through the rest of the season and into the playoffs. Probably ending on Stanley Cup final night, cuz what's the fun if the team doesn't make it to the end?

Smiley0501 · Apr 17, 2012

Just popping in to say - I love hockey & I'd read it

Sports books

Becca C.

lolchemist

Shooting stars.

Becca C.

Sage

Our Lady of Parentheticals

Kelsey

Book Slut

lolchemist

Shooting stars.

Kitty Pryde

i luv you giant bear statue

Becca C.

lolchemist

Shooting stars.

Kitty Pryde

i luv you giant bear statue

WalpurgisQuill

frimble3

Heckuva good sport

Polenth

Mushroom

lolchemist

Shooting stars.

lolchemist

Shooting stars.

LadyA

Always lurking, never posting...

Cai

fish biscuit

totopink

WalpurgisQuill

Chumala

frimble3

Heckuva good sport

chevbrock

Becca C.

Smiley0501

Lurker, now activated. :-)